‘We’ve always loved horror it’s just that horror hasn’t always loved us…’
It is an infamous truism that there was a period in cinema (primarily the ’80s and ’90s) in which the black character would be the first to die on screen. Director Xavier Burgin addresses this phenomenon in his documentary Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror as well as other common tropes such as the magical negro, the black best friend and blaxploitation.
Through extensive interviews with black horror loyalty such as Tony Todd, Ken Foree and Jordan Peele, this Shudder-produced documentary provides a whistle-stop tour through all the significant talking points of the black horror experience. Beginning with the outright racist movies of the silent era (you know the ones) into blaxploitation classics such as Blacula and Ganja & Hess through to the slasher era and beyond, Burgin and his contributors pack a lot into the skinny 83-minute run time, to the point where one of my only complaints is that I’d have liked this film to have been longer.
Horror Noire is rare in terms of horror documentaries as this is one of the only ones that I would say doesn’t require a previous appreciation or knowledge of the genre to have an impact. Because Burgin uses his interviews to weave in social commentary, cinematic criticism and horror history, there is enough here for everyone to enjoy. An excellent documentary.